St Swithun's Church, Worcester

St Swithun's Church is a redundant Anglican church in the city of Worcester, Worcestershire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The church is considered to be "one of the best preserved examples of an early Georgian church in England". Clifton-Taylor includes the church in his list of 'best' English parish churches.HistoryThe earliest documentary evidence of the church is in 1126 when Eudo, Dean of Worcester, gave permission for the nearby Benedictine priory to build a church on his land. The resulting church was dedicated to Saint Swithun. The tower of the present church dates from the 15th century, but between 1734 and 1736 the rest of the church was rebuilt and the tower was refaced. The architects were Thomas and Edward Woodward of Chipping Campden. In the middle of the 19th century the east window was redesigned by Henry Eginton to accommodate new stained glass. In 1977 the church was declared redundant and was vested in the Churches Conservation Trust. The church is now used as a venue for special services, ceremonies and concerts. A group has been formed, known as the Friends of St Swithun's, to help in the upkeep of the building and to encourage its use by the local community.